5 key questions as Jets ready for second preseason game vs. Washington

The Jets have plenty of intriguing storylines entering their second preseason game against Washington on Thursday night. A week of spirited practices that included a few scuffles will be capped by another important piece of Gang Green’s evaluation process, including a certain rookie quarterback who has been opening eyes throughout training camp.

Here are five burning questions as we inch closer to the start of the regular season.

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Jets quarterback Sam Darnold (14) throws a pass during the second half of a preseason NFL football game against the Atlanta Falcons on Aug. 10. (Bill Kostroun / AP)

1)Will Sam Darnold continue to do Sam Darnold things?

The rookie is in line to make his first – but certainly not last – start under the bright lights. Darnold flashed some of the skills in the preseason opener that have the Jets privately giddy about him.

I sound like a broken record, but here I go again: This kid is the real deal… and Gang Green knows it.

He’s more than simply the future. He’s the present, too. Barring deer-in-the-headlights moments over the next couple weeks, it’d be an upset if Darnold isn’t the Week 1 starter. The brain trust is happier with this kid with each passing day, according to people familiar with the organization’s giddiness level.

There’s no indication that Darnold will freeze up against Washington, but Gang Green’s powers that be want to see how he does with their starters (and against Washington’s first-team defense). Darnold certainly impressed one notable Washington player during the teams’ joint practices this week.

“Someone asked me about him the other day, and I was like, yeah, whatever, he's just a guy," Washington cornerback Josh Norman said. "Then you go out here and see him making these throws and you're like, all right. That's not so much a college-level throw. He's putting them on the money."

"It's like, dang," Norman added. "You get rookies in here, and you try to mess them with a little bit, and bait them a little bit into thinking they're throwing a route, and you can make a play and he's not having it. It's so crazy to see that at an early age. Dak [Prescott] has that; Carson [Wentz] has that. So it's like, man, they must come in here not wanting to screw it up, and he's so far impressed me and I didn't want him to. I wanted to break all rookies. He's been doing a great job."

Norman got a sneak peak at what the Jets have known for months: Darnold plays like a much more experienced quarterback.

"I gave him some cheese," Norman said of one play in which he tried to fool Darnold. "He held it, and he was going to throw it, and he pulled it back and I jumped back real fast, and I was like, you little devil. OK, I see you working really good right now. I couldn't bait him like I wanted to, and he saw it and he read it out, and he read it out like a vet. You tip your hat to a guy like that, learning at an early age when guys are messing with him and when they're not. It's pretty awesome."

Jets QB Teddy Bridgewater calls out the play in the first half against the Falcons during a preseason game at MetLife Stadium. (Elsa / Getty Images)

2)Will Teddy Bridgewater play himself out of town?

Bridgewater was terrific in his Jets debut last week, engineering a pair of 10-play scoring drives on his only two series. The Jets are still in quarterback evaluation mode, but Bridgewater offers them flexibility that few, if any, teams have at the game’s most important position.

There’s not a strong trade market for Bridgewater… yet. I touched base with some executives on other teams who still want to study how Bridgewater’s knee holds up to more contact. Translation: They want to see him take more hits.

The Jets are amenable to trading Bridgewater for the right price as long as Darnold continues to trend in the right direction, according to sources. Spoiler: The Jets believe that Darnold will continue to trend in the right direction.

Although there are some folks on One Jets Drive who want to keep Bridgewater, it doesn’t make much sense given that he’ll be an unrestricted free agent after the season. (No, the Jets will not be placing the franchise tag on him). Gang Green could turn their $1 million investment in Bridgewater into a 2019 premium draft pick. If that happens, everyone in Florham Park should be happy.

Todd Bowles isn’t exactly working with a who’s who of outside linebackers, but he desperately needs at least one of them to grab the vacancy opposite Jordan Jenkins. Brandon Copeland and undrafted rookie Frankie Luvu have been given solid opportunities to earn the job. Both will get another shot against Washington.

“We don't have the name guy,” Bowles said. “We don't have the Lawrence Taylor, so to speak, but we have guys that work hard and are very tough at the point of attack. You don't need a name guy. You just need a guy with production and the production will make the name. Disrupting the quarterback is the big thing as well as setting the edge. We have certain guys that can do a lot of things right now. We’re mixing and matching to get a feel for what guys can and can't do right now.”

Gang Green has ranked in the bottom five in sacks in each of the past two seasons due, in part, to a lack of a gamechanger on the edge.

“They're hard to come by,” Bowles said. “Some years, you’ll get a bunch of them. Other years, you won't get as many. But you have to look and find them. They're out there. Obviously, the great ones get gobbled up early and then you have to find some with traits and then it has to work out for you. You have to keep your head down and they're hard to come by. They're a premium obviously. Some of those guys are playing basketball as well — the athletic guys at 6-4, 6-5 — but they're out there.”

Dylan Donahue won’t be mistaken for a hardwood warrior, but the second-year player did have a quality performance (1 sack, 2 quarterback hits, 2 tackles for loss) in the preseason opener. Can he string together another good outing?

“He's made a few plays in the game,” Bowles said. “He’s got to continue in practice and he’s got to continue growing and grasping the system and we'll see how the other games play out.”

Donahue, who pleaded guilty this summer to two DUIs, is expected to be suspended by the NFL in the near future.

The Jets offensive line struggled in the team's first preseason game, revealing a gaping whole the front office will need to sure up to protect Sam Darnold, their franchise QB. (Julio Cortez / AP)

4)Will the new-look offensive line get its act together?

Real talk: The Jets need much more work transitioning to Rick Dennison’s outside-zone scheme. There were way too many breakdowns up front last week. Guys were getting pushed back with regularity. Fullback Lawrence Thomas was shaky. It wasn’t pretty.

There were some solid moments in pass protection, but it wasn’t nearly good enough especially since the Falcons weren’t exactly dialing up a lot of pressure.

If that wasn’t troubling enough, Gang Green got some bad news this week after swing tackle Ben Ijalana landed on Injured Reserve after hurting his shoulder during the joint practices. So, Brent Qvale, who struggled in the preseason opener (especially on outside-zone runs to his side), is the top backup tackle. Qvale, however, is currently starting since left tackle Kelvin Beachum is out with a foot/ankle injury.

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Qvale doesn’t have the lateral agility/athleticism to be a starting tackle on either side. Sprinkle in that right guard Brian Winters is getting eased back after offseason abdominal/core surgery and you have the makings of a potentially significant issue for this offense.

Remember: Sam Darnold’s standout plays in the preseason opener were born out of shaky protection. His brilliant 14-yard touchdown pass on the run was a result of a collapsed pocket that prompted him to get out of dodge.

The Jets need several offensive line upgrades in the offseason. Mike Maccagnan has drafted 28 players in his four drafts. Only one was an offensive lineman (2015 fifth-rounder Brandon Shell). That must change. Protecting Darnold must be the priority moving forward. The last thing the Jets need is a repeat of what happened with the Colts and Andrew Luck.

5)Does Todd Bowles have the stomach to watch his punt returners again?

It’s inexcusable that the Jets haven’t solved their punt-returner issues yet. It’s as if Gang Green has written off that part of the game altogether. Talk about a head scratcher. Rookie Trenton Cannon muffed two punts last week. Does he have enough time to earn Bowles’ trust? If Cannon muffs another punt Thursday, it’ll be three strikes and he’s out.